Locals reflect on one-year anniversary of Boston Marathon bombings

Tuesday

Apr 15, 2014 at 10:26 AMApr 15, 2014 at 10:26 AM

By Megan Brandow mbrandow@messengerpostmedia.com

BOSTON — One year after the attack that left three dead and more than 260 injured, locals reflect on the 2013 Boston Marathon bombings and gear up for this year’s race that is expected to draw thousands more than last year.

The pair of bombings near the finish line at last year’s 117th annual event have not deterred runners from participating this year. Instead, an additional 9,000 runners have rallied together to make the race next Monday, April 21, bigger and better than ever.

“A lot of people are excited about it and are excited to have it be a normal race day,” said Honeoye native Kyle Meek. “There will be a lot of emotions this year for obvious reasons."

Meek was in the middle of the chaos at last year’s race as an Army lieutenant working crowd control near the finish line. Meek and his wife live in Shrewsbury just outside Boston.

It was a seemingly normal marathon day in Boston last April, Meek said, until he heard the bombs go off. The scene then turned chaotic as he and his fellow members of the armed services cleared the streets and continued to work into the night controlling crowds and keeping people away from the finish-line-turned-crime-scene.

“We got notified over radio that a bomb went off over the finish line,” Meek said. “We had the crowd asking us what happened, and we didn’t have information. We just had to clear the streets. It was pretty hectic.”

Meek will once again be working at the marathon this year managing the larger-than-ever crowds.

The race — which has 36,000 participants, 100 volunteers and up to a million spectators this year — will have more security than ever before. All who attend can expect security checkpoints, bomb-sniffing dogs and other security measures not yet disclosed.

The police presence will also be amped up at this year’s race, with 3,500 uniformed police officers as well as members of the National Guard and the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency.

Four local runners from the Moms in Motion club (MIM) — with groups in Canandaigua and Pittsford — will be running the 118th annual marathon on Monday.

For one MIM runner who will race this year, Jeanne Magauro, last year’s attack hit close to home — literally. Magauro is a native of Woburn, Mass., a suburb just nine miles north of Boston. She now lives in Pittsford and was in Boston last year during the marathon, but did not participate as she had in the past.

“I happened to be there and my cousin came in and told me the bombings had taken place,” Magauro recalls. “I tried to contact my friends from out of town, knowing they were there. Luckily, they were fine and they were safe.”

Magauro knew several fellow MIM members were running in the race last year, including Canandaigua native Johanna Gullo.

In an interview right after the race last year, Gullo said that first thing after the race she had 16 text messages from family and friends — including her 10-year-old daughter— asking if she was OK.

“It’s the Boston Marathon and you think that you’re going to get done and you’re going to be in the most exciting atmosphere,” Gullo said. “Then it’s on the news and your family and friends are texting you to see if you’re OK.”

Gullo will not be going to Boston this year, but Magauro and three other MIM runners will be participating in the race. This will be the eighth Boston Marathon for Magauro.

“There will be so much security, there is no reason to worry,” she said. “I feel very confident it’s going to be fine. This year we will be reclaiming the spirit of the marathon. I'm not nervous — I’m excited.”

Boston may be a big city, but Meek said it’s more of a “hometown atmosphere” where everyone comes together when needed, which is evident by the “Boston Strong” campaign that began after last year’s attacks.

The charity-turned-slogan raises money for victims of the 2013 bombings, and Massachusetts lawmakers even approved a “Boston Strong” license plate this week with proceeds to benefit One Fund Boston‚ which also donates money to the bombing victims.

“People are going to come out even though this happened to show support for Boston and say, ‘You can’t mess with us,’" Meek said.

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